


warmth in january

by thoughtslockedupincages



Category: Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: Cuties, F/M, Fluff, anne gets into trouble and gilbert saves her, takes place early in season 3 I suppose?, tiny bit of angst but mostly just cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-17
Packaged: 2021-02-07 13:50:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21459103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thoughtslockedupincages/pseuds/thoughtslockedupincages
Summary: Gilbert goes to help Anne after a sledding accident and, as always, learns something from the fire-haired girl.
Relationships: Gilbert Blythe & Anne Shirley
Comments: 3
Kudos: 144





	warmth in january

Ever since his father had died, Gilbert Blythe had come to dislike winters. To him they suddenly seemed unforgivingly cold, ruthless, dark. He had learned to live with them, of course, and having a house filled with family again helped, but he couldn't quite bring himself to love the long frostbitten months like he had when he was a boy. He distracted himself by burying himself in his schoolwork, occasionally letting his thoughts drift to a certain red-haired girl, and attempting to learn all of Mary's wonderful cozy soup recipes. As it turned out, he wasn't a spectacular cook. Mary was patient, though, and at the start of the new year she vowed that she would make him into a master of the kitchen by December. 

Gilbert had just begun another terrifying journey into attempting to recreate her chicken noodle soup, chopping up a handful of carrots, when Diana Barry showed up on his doorstep with an expression that nearly made him slice his own thumb off.

Her dark hair was wild, her breath panting out like mangled lace in the air, and she didn’t bother knocking on the door before barging into his kitchen. Bash, who had been sitting at the table watching Gilbert with thinly veiled amusement, rose immediately to his feet. 

Gilbert brushed his hands on pants, an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. “Diana? What - ”

“It’s Anne.” Gilbert felt as if a cold fist had plunged through his chest. Diana continued, breathless, slightly panicked. “We were out sledding and she - you know how she gets so distracted and she doesn’t  _ notice _ things and her sled ran directly into a tree and she’s just - Gilbert, she’s not  _ moving _ , I don’t know what - ”

“She’s out there alone?” Gilbert was already abandoning the carrots and yanking on his jacket, trying to ignore the way his heart was suddenly thundering so loudly that he could barely hear Diana’s response.

“Ruby’s with her.”

“What is going on here?” Mary had emerged from where she’d been in the other room with Delphine, staring at Diana’s breathless, snow-caked state. “Why are you two just letting this poor girl stand half-frozen in my kitchen?”

“Anne’s hurt,” Bash said briefly, also grabbing his coat. “Have you informed the Cuthberts?”

Diana shook her head. “We were closer to here.”

“I’ll go. We’ll fetch a doctor. Blythe, go find her before it gets dark.”

Gilbert’s uneasy gaze slid out the window, toward where the sun was rapidly dipping in the sky. “Diana, can you lead me back to where she is?”

Diana’s head bobbed once.

“I’ll stay with Delphine.” Mary’s face had gone pale. “Gilbert, you go and take good care of that girl, you hear?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He felt as if he was listening to himself from very far away. Heart still pounding, he turned back toward Diana. “Let’s go.”

As soon as they were out the door Diana took off at a run, surprisingly fast despite her height and skirts. Gilbert followed close behind, disappearing into the woods with her. He barely noticed the cold, his attention instead intent on the dark-haired girl in front of her and the way the sky seemed to be growing darker all too quickly. Clouds were rolling in - another snowstorm, no doubt.

He spotted Anne and Ruby before Diana had time to alert him and instantly increased his pace, passing by her and coming to a stop where the Shirley-Cuthbert girl lay sprawled out on the ground. Her hair had come loose from its braids and was spread out around her like a halo of fire, the color striking against the snow. Her face was very pale.

He had expected Ruby to be in a state of hysterics, but when she spoke her voice was surprisingly steady. “We were too scared to move her.”

“That’s good.” Gilbert sank down to his knees beside Anne as Diana caught up to them. His hand brushed the hair out of her face and he frowned, pulling one glove off with his teeth and feeling for her pulse just beneath her jawline. An impressive bump had formed at the corner of her forehead, no doubt where she had hit it against the tree.

“Is she going to be okay?” Diana’s voice trembled slightly.

“I think she’s just unconscious.” As carefully as he was able, trying to keep propriety in mind, he slid his hand farther back and felt behind her neck, starting at the base of her head and shifting down to the top of her back. A hint of relief eased the tightness in his chest when he didn’t find anything that felt abnormal. “But we need to get her somewhere warm. It should be safe to move her.”

“Your house is closest.” Diana, brave and loyal as ever, dropped down beside Gilbert and moved to lift her. He stopped her with a hand and an attempt at a reassuring smile.

“I’ve got her.”

He bundled Anne into his arms as if she were the most delicate thing he’d ever held despite the fact that he was certain she was the strongest person he knew. She was just so _pale_, and she barely stirred when he pulled her against his chest.

“Did someone go to get the Cuthberts?” Ruby was frowning worriedly at Anne.

“Bash did,” Gilbert reassured her, beginning to following the tracks he and Diana had made in the snow back to his home. Anne shivered, and he pulled her closer. “Diana, go ahead and tell Mary we’re coming. Tell her to get out all our blankets and keep the fire going.”

Diana nodded and took off. Gilbert wished he could run after her, getting Anne somewhere safe as quickly as possible, but he was scared to jostle her. Ruby followed closely at his side, her eyes never leaving Anne.

“She’s so brave,” the shorter girl declared suddenly, when they were about halfway back to his home. “She’ll be fine.”

Gilbert glanced down at Anne’s face. It was beginning to snow again, and a few snowflakes had caught in her lashes. Through his worry, he felt a hint of warmth. “She will,” he agreed.

Mary was ready for them when they finally arrived, the fire roaring in the hearth and blankets piled up on the floor next to it. Gilbert gingerly laid her down in them before straightening and pulling off his jacket. “She needs to get out of her wet clothes. Then wrap her up in those blankets. I’ll go check on Delphine in the meantime.”

He left the girls to take care of Anne and darted into the other room where Delphine lay, blissfully unaware of the blizzard that was beginning to blow outside. The clouds and setting sun had dropped them into a sudden darkness, but Gilbert hardly took notice, instead pacing the room until Mary called him back in.

What he saw made him nearly fall over with relief. Anne’s eyelids were fluttering, her body shifting beneath the blankets. He was at her side in an instant, once again brushing the hair back from her forehead and letting his hand rest there.

The physical contact seemed to bring her fully into consciousness. She blinked at him, then flinched.

“Anne?” Gilbert kept his voice soft, brows furrowed in concern. “How do you feel?”

“M’ head hurts,” she muttered after a moment, voice hoarse. It was the most beautiful sound he’d heard all day.

“We think you hit it pretty hard. Anything else?”

She frowned, winced, then seemed to wiggle experimentally. “Don’t think so.”

“Good.” The last of his worry eased. “That’s good. You’re going to be just fine.”

She brought a hand up from the cocoon of blankets and felt at the lump on her forehead. Her gaze shifted toward the window, then back to Gilbert. She frowned. “How long until I can go sledding again?”

“Again?” He stared at her incredulously. “Are you serious? After what just happened?”

“Just because something bad happened doesn’t mean I should let it change the way I feel about something I love.” 

Anne shifted to rise but Gilbert gently placed a hand where he estimated her shoulder to be beneath all the blankets. His disbelief faded into a tenderness that shouldn’t have been surprising but was, nonetheless. “You need to rest. Matthew and Marilla will be here soon.”

Diana dropped to her knees beside Gilbert and clutched at her best friend’s hand. “Anne, don’t ever scare me like that again. I thought you were hurt really badly.”

Anne managed a smile. “Well, it does  _ hurt _ really badly.”

Gilbert took that as his cue to leave, standing up and moving toward the window to watch for Matthew and Marilla’s arrival with the doctor. The blizzard was getting worse. He traced his thumb over the frost on the window, listening to the sound of Anne’s voice gradually grow stronger behind him as she spoke with Diana and Ruby and Mary. With his concern for Anne almost completely dissolved and the light of the fire and candles spreading a golden warmth over everything, he felt a sudden sense of safety and contentment that was amplified in contrast with the roaring storm outside. It reminded him why he had once loved winters.

_ Just because something bad happened doesn’t mean I should let it change the way I feel about something I love _ .

Gilbert smiled at the snowstorm and watched it rage on.


End file.
